10 Sure Signs It's Time to Quit Your Job

It's a dilemma many workers face — how to know when it's time to quit. If you're not sure whether you should stick with the job you're in or throw in the towel, a few signs can help you decide.

To find out exactly what these signs are, and what they really mean, Business News Daily asked employees in a variety of fields how they know it's time to move on.

From not being able to get out of bed in the morning to dreaming about your cubicle every night, here are the top 10 signs that it's time to quit your job:

Extreme boredom

Sure, some days at work are more exciting than others, but if you find that every day in the office is a snooze-fest, it may be time to find a new gig.

As an executive career coach and former employee turned entrepreneur, Jessica Manca knows a few things about calling it quits. But she cites boredom as the number one sign that it's time to throw in the towel.

Manca — whose company, Managing Mindspaces, helps professionals balance their paychecks with their passions — said that if you're bored, have lost motivation, are just going through the motions or are procrastinating more than usual at work, you may want to consider looking for a more fulfilling job.

That sinking feeling

If just thinking about your job makes you want to throw up, guess what? It's time to quit.

"I literally would wake up feeling sick to my stomach, dreading the drive into work," said Myra Dorsey, owner of La Bodi Massage Inc. in Maryland, who worked for three Fortune 500 companies before founding her own company in 2011.

Lori Malett, president of Hatch Staffing Services in Milwaukee, said her formula for knowing when it's time to quit also involves certain stomach-turning feelings.

"It is time to quit when you wake up every day with a pit in your stomach, dreading getting in the shower and going to work," said Malett. "It is time to quit when you leave work each day, already dreading and thinking about coming in the next day."

No room for growth

Being comfortable in your position is a good thing. However, being so comfortable in your position that you're never challenged or intrigued is definitely not a good thing. If your job just doesn't stimulate you like it used to, it might be time to move on.

"Once you stop learning and growing in your job, it's time to look for something else," said Adam Grealish, founder of Roletroll.com, a job recommendation engine for finance and tech workers.

Steve Langerud, a workplace consultant and human relations specialist, agrees. Langerud said it's time to quit when you want to develop new skills that you simply can't learn at your current job.

Failing mental health

If your current position causes you so much stress that you fear your mental health is at stake, get out of there fast!

"When I started waking up at night shaking because I was having nightmares about my boss, I knew it was time to quit," said Suzi Istvan, a brand strategist and Web developer. "A job isn't worth losing sanity!"

Tom Mulherin, who very recently quit his teaching job in Baltimore, relayed a similar message. After working for a year in a failing school system, Mulherin said he decided that his mental health, self-respect and need to escape stress were too important; he couldn't let his nightmare of a job continue to jeopardize them.

"I gave my two weeks' notice to my employer, and almost immediately felt a sense of liberation, positive momentum and relief that I have not felt in a period of time," Mulherin said.

Something better (for your soul) comes along

Perhaps one of the clearest signs that it's time to quit your job is if a better position becomes available to you. But judging a "better" opportunity isn't as clear-cut as you might think. Just because another position pays more, that doesn't mean you'll be happier in it.

Langerud said you can judge if something is actually a better opportunity (and a viable reason to quit) by whether or not the new position "feels like home or fills a deeper need."

Langerud has himself quit many a job, for many a reason, he said, but quitting for something more than just a bigger paycheck, he explained, led him to better career opportunities.

Retirement seems much too far away

If you're under the age of 40 and you can't stop dreaming about retirement, you may want to consider changing careers. That was the case for Gregory Gass, who, after nearly 10 years as a pediatric anesthesiologist, left his job to pursue a career as a psychiatrist. How did he know it was time to make a change?

"All I could think about was how quickly I could retire," Gass said. "I was 38."

Things are going from bad to worse

Some days at work are bound to be better than others, but if you get the impression that each new day on the job is a little worse than the one before it, it might be quitting time.

"I would say it is time to quit once the factors determining your job satisfaction are changing permanently for the worse, with no hope of improvement," said Liz Jackson, with Agency Fusion, a Web design and development firm in Utah.

As Jackson explained, if the company you work for makes a big change — hiring scores of new employees, changing its management structure, etc. — you might find that you no longer like working for that company. Recognizing this fact, and being proactive about it, is a healthy reason to quit.

You don't fit in

Sometimes, it takes a while to adjust to a new job. But if you've been in the same position for some time, and you still don't feel like you fit in, you might want to seek employment elsewhere.

Karin Hurt — leadership consultant, speaker, educator and CEO of Let's Grow Leaders — said that when there are no kindred spirits in sight, it's time to find a new job. Not fitting in, Hurt said, might do more than hold you back from making friends; more importantly, it might keep you from finding the mentors you need to grow in your career.

This double whammy of lack of work friends and lack of guidance is a lonely place to be, Hurt said, and can lead to other negative ramifications at work, like feeling grouchy, unappreciated or trapped.

Your jar is empty ... literally

If you're not comfortable leaving your job based on an intangible "sign" or feeling, there's another way to make the decision. Diane Hansen, chief inspiration officer at What Works Coaching, a business consulting company in Carson City, Nevada, has devised a system for her clients who are thinking of leaving their positions for greener pastures.

"Get a small Mason jar, and fill it with rocks," Hansen said. "The size of those rocks is up to you. The more you want to quit right now, the bigger the rock. But don't choose any rocks bigger than half the size of your fist."

If this method sounds strange so far, just keep reading. As Hansen explained, every time something happens that makes you want to quit your job, you should remove a rock from the jar. Every time you have a moment that, if repeated, would make you want to stick with the job you have, add a rock to the jar.

"Do this until the jar is either empty or you can no longer put rocks in the jar," Hansen said. "Then, make your decision."

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Elizabeth Palermo

Elizabeth writes about innovative technologies and business trends. She has traveled throughout the Americas in her roles as student, English teacher, Spanish language interpreter and freelance writer. She graduated with a B.A. in International Affairs from the George Washington University. You can follow her on Twitter @techEpalermo or Google+.